Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) smashed into coastal communities on the central island of Samar, about 600 kilometers southeast of Manila, before dawn on November 8, 2013 with maximum sustained winds of about 315 kilometers an hour.

Yolanda is the strongest tropical cyclone so far on record to make landfall in world history. Citing figures from the US-based Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) states that Yolanda’s average strength of 195 mph (314 kph) at landfall beat the previous record set in 1969 by Hurricane Camille, which carried 190 mph (306 kph) winds when it landed in Mississippi in the US.

Yolanda’s wind strength made it one of the most powerful typhoons ever recorded in the world, and the most intense to have made landfall. It downed communication and power lines and blocked roads in the central

Impact Assessment: Super Typhoon Yolanda 2013

Philippines, which is still reeling from the devastating impact of a 7.2 magnitude quake in October.

According to the National Disaster Management Council, more than 125,000 people in the most vulnerable areas had been moved to evacuation centers before Yolanda hit and millions of others huddled in their homes.

Casualties and Damages

Communication lines with Guiuan remained cut off in the afternoon, and the civil defense office said it was unable to give an assessment of the damage there.

In Tacloban, corrugated iron sheets were ripped off roofs and floated with the wind before crashing into buildings. Flash floods also turned Tacloban’s streets into rivers, while 6 bamboo washed away along a beach more than 200 km to south.

At least five roads in Bicol and Eastern Visayas regions were not passable.

Classes in private and public schools at all levels were suspended in Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon.

Also, nine maritime incidents were reported by the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) in Bohol, Cebu and Samar. A total of 1,335 shipping passengers are still stranded in several ports in the areas affected by Yolanda.

Power was restored in parts of Sibulan and Dumaguete City in Negros Oriental and in Siquijor, Siquijor.

Region 4A – CALABARZON

Affected families, power outages, and stranded passengers data are based from CALABARZON Region Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council)

– Towns of Catanauan, San Francisco, San Andres, Buenavista, San Narciso, and Mulanay experienced power outages due to strong winds

Region 4B –MIMAROPA

A total of 4,214 families or 19,873 persons were evacuated at MIMAROPA region

I. Occidental Mindoro

– 650 affected families (more than 4,000 persons) from Sablayan

II. Oriental Mindoro

– 3,134 affected families or 9,656 individuals were evacuated.

III. Palawan

– 34 affected families or 134 individuals were forcibly evacuated.

– 3 people were killed

Region V –Bicol Region

A total of 154,731 families or 758,808 persons were evacuated preemptively across the region. An amount of Php 48 million covering 1,469 hectares of rice fields and Php 1.2 million covering 285 hectares of corn were badly damaged.

I. Masbate

– 3,099 affected families or 15,718 individuals were evacuated in Masbate City

Iloilo, Caticlan, Romblon, Dumaguete, Bacolod, Masbate, Legaspi and Surigao airports are now back to normal operations.

Roxas airport would be closed until Sunday, while Kalibo airport is expected to resume operations on Monday.

Tacloban and Busuanga airports were still closed due to severe damage from the typhoon.

Meanwhile, the Philippine National Police said that 90 percent of houses and buildings in Capiz were damaged by the typhoon but they are still not able to establish communication in the storm-hit area.

Assessment

As Yolanda moves away from the Philippines, all public storm signals have been lifted.

Meanwhile, a possible low pressure area (LPA) is being monitored in Eastern Mindanao and may enter the Philippines on Monday, November 11. In Pagasa’s satellite photos of Yolanda’s exit shows a “circulation” off eastern Mindanao.

Based on the initial assessment, after Yolanda makes 6 landfall it has slowed down to 175 km/h sustained winds and 210 km/h of gusts. It is now moving towards Vietnam.

Yolanda is expected to steadily weaken to a Category 1 and 2 equivalent hurricane by the time it nears the Vietnamese coast, and may weaken further to a tropical storm, even if the center remains offshore of northern Vietnam.

An average of 20 major storms, many of them deadly, batter the Philippines each year. The country is particularly vulnerable because it is often the first

The Philippines suffered the world’s strongest storm of 2012, when Typhoon Pablo left about 2,000 people dead or missing in Mindanao.

Scarcity of food and water are experiencing in some evacuation centers because some agencies were still not able to reach some far flung areas. Expect looting incidents in disaster-hit areas in the affected provinces. Aside from this, diseases may easily spread due to situation in the evacuation centers.

Recommendation

Partners are advised to avoid travelling to the affected provinces and areas damaged by the Typhoon until further notice. It is also recommended to monitor news and updates: Secure communication equipment like mobile phones and radio to be prepared in case communication lines would shut down. Partners are not advised for any urgent evacuations however take note of the nearest evacuation areas in case you need to evacuate. It is highly recommended to categorize each itineraries, it is recommended to postpone trips on a different date. For high priority trips, it is recommended for local counterparts to travel in behalf of the foreign counterparts. Stay alert and keep monitoring the radio and television. Absolutely no side trips. Move away from coastal areas. Check the condition of water, gas and electricity conduits, both visually and by smell, never start machinery. In the event of any irregularity or doubt, turn off the mains switches, and inform the technicians or authorities. Move away from the path of landslide. The danger increases near river valleys and low lying areas. Be alert with unusual sounds, such as trees cracking or boulders knocking together, which might indicate moving debris. Prepare necessary provisions that would last a day-medicine, water and food. To reduce the risk of acquiring dengue, traveler is strongly advised to apply insect repellents especially during daytime.